Schalmaedchen German for Scarf Girl
by ShadowDragon1
Summary: A strange sort of fairy tale...my first try really. Let me know what you think!
1.

Once upon a time in the hills of Germany, there was a small kingdom. In this kingdom, there were many small poor villages. In one such village, there lived a poor husband and wife with their daughter. No matter what they did, this peasant family could never afford enough food to feed the whole family. Then one day the couple realized something about their daughter. She was fully grown in her 20s with long golden red hair. Her parents were so eager to make money that they started to wonder how much their daughter's hair would sell for. Therefore, one day they persuaded their daughter to shave her head telling her it would help the family. Then they hired an old maid to weave her hair into beautiful clothing and scarves. The couple then set out to sell the clothing to their neighbors. The clothes were so beautiful that everyone around wanted to buy them. The clothes were such a hit that every time the girl's hair started to grow back they would shave it off and weave it into clothing again.  
Seeing how she was being used, the girl tried to run away. However, her parents watched her closely and stopped her before she could get to far. They dragged her back and locked her in the room with the old maid. The girl cried for hours and told the old maid all her sorrows and how she wished to be free of her life. The old maid never spoke but listened intently. Over the next few days, the girl continued to tell the old maid all her despairs and wishes. She spoke of how her parents forced her to walk into town bald to buy food while everyone stared at her.  
"I wish," the girl sobbed, "I wish they couldn't see my bald head!"   
The old maid felt sorry for the girl, thinking no one should be so humiliated. Therefore, the next day when the girl woke up the old maid presented her with a scarf and finally spoke.  
"This scarf," she told the girl, "is made from your own beautiful hair. Wear it when you go out and no longer despair."  
That day the girl wore the scarf into town and no longer felt humiliated. Everyone admired the beautiful scarf she wore and the girl was happy. The days turned to weeks, the weeks turned to months, and always the girl wore the scarf. She wore it so much that the villagers started to call her Schal (pronounced Shal. Means scarf in German). What was even more spectacular was that wearing the scarf caused Scahl's hair to grow faster. Because of this, Scahl's parents were able to make more and more products from her hair and they started to be kinder to her. 


	2. 

Now Schal was happy until she realized her life was being wasted away. She was stuck everyday in a room with the old maid who had not spoken since she had given Schal the scarf and was only let out to go into town where the villagers watched her as closely as her parents did. Schal cried to the old maid about this and told her she wished to be taken away from this place forever. The old maid consoled her and the girl cried herself to sleep.  
The next day Scahl was in town when a caravan arrived. Seeing the commotion it caused, Schal rushed home. When she arrived there, her parents were beaming with joy. Next to them was a tall handsome man that Schal realized was the Prince. Her mother happily fingered five gold pieces in her hand as Schal's father approached her.  
"Ah our little Scahl," he said smoothly, "I have great news. The Prince has come to take you and the old maid to his castle where you will be happy."  
Scahl was overjoyed with the news and quickly ran to help the old maid pack. The old maid was pleased to see the girl so happy and together they went off to the castle. When they reach the castle, the Prince led them to a large room.   
"Here old maid," the Prince proclaimed, "you will weave Schal's hair and cut it whenever it reaches shoulder length. This will be your home Schal. Your meals will be brought to you and I will visit you as much as I can."  
With that, the Prince left and locked the door. Schal watched the Prince go in dismay and realized that even though she had left her parents she was still a prisoner. She wept and cried to the old maid who sadly returned to weaving her hair. The weeks went by and the old maid and Scahl grew closer. Schal knew the maid was magic because of the power of the scarf she had made for her and so she told the old maid that she wished she was truly free from everyone and that no one would cut her hair for money.   
As Scahl was telling her wish, the prince came in with an announcement. In two weeks, when Scahl's hair had grown down to her waist she would marry him. The Prince smiled at her and kissed her hand before leaving. Schal's heart sank and she thought all hope was lost. She knew the Prince was only marrying her so no one else could sell her hair. Schal felt hopeless until the night before the wedding. Schal, who had just finished brushing her new long hair, was tying the scarf to her head when the old maid came up to her. She gestured for Scahl to stand so she did. Then, talking Scahl's hands, the maid spoke. The words were in a language Schal could not understand and she jumped back in surprise when a white light consumed her and the maid. Suddenly they were in the hallway outside their room, but the old maid was no longer an old maid but a handsome young man. Schal stood back in horror but the man smiled at her.  
"Do not be frightened dear Schal," he said quietly, "I am a mage who lived in your village since my birth. I was only two years old when you were born and I have been watching you ever since. You are special Schal, for more reasons than your hair but your parents never told you that. When I heard your parents wanted to weave and sell your hair I disguised myself as an old maid so that you would learn to trust me and confide in me. I knew then as I lived with you that I loved you. I tried to do everything to make you happy but nothing was enough. For everywhere you go people never see beyond how much money they can make from your hair. Since I love you, I cannot let you marry the Prince tomorrow. I want you to run away with me."  
Schal, though touched by the mage's speech, could not bring herself past the fact that this man had been her friend the old maid and so she ran away from him ignoring his calls. Either by luck or because of a spell from the mage, Scahl escaped from the castle and ran into the forest. 


	3. 

There she stayed for days thinking over what had happened to her and what the mage had said. One day she came to a realization. The young man, though he had deceived her, had been only trying to help her because he loved her. She knew then that she could be happy with him and that she could love him because of everything he had done for her.   
Schal waited until dawn the next day before returning to the castle. When she reached the castle, she overheard horrible news. The mage had been arrested and jailed, being accused of helping Schal escape. After hours of searching, Scahl found a barred window that led to the mage's cell. It was low and close to the ground which Scahl assumed meant his cell was below the castle with only this one little window for air. Schal collapsed by the window and called the mage. When he came up to it she wept and wept and confessed her love for him and that she would forever be grateful for what he tried to do for her. The young man smiled and reached to take her hand. Weeping she handed the scarf to him, saying she'd rather walk around bald being humiliated and have her hair cut off and sold than see him harmed because of helping her. Suddenly, the young mage was kneeling next to her. He helped Scahl stand and hugged her tightly.   
"The love for which you handed me the scarf and the words you said set us both free," he said with a smile, "It was not just the other people that had to see beyond your hair but also you had to. You were willing to forever be humiliated and unhappy if it would set me free. For that you have saved us both."  
The young mage kissed her and lead her into the forest. Together they escaped from the kingdom and built a small cottage in the hills. After a few months of getting to know each other, Scahl and the mage were married and lived happily ever after. Schal no longer had to cut off her hair to be sold and she could grow it as long as she wanted to, cutting it whenever she pleased. 


End file.
